


A Small Price

by Nerdytshirt (GreyHoodie)



Series: Light Amidst the Shadow [1]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV), The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-01
Updated: 2018-02-01
Packaged: 2019-03-12 03:28:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13538727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreyHoodie/pseuds/Nerdytshirt
Summary: “It is a difficult thing you ask of me, to relinquish my own daughter to a mortal, when I do not count our own kind of worthy of her blood,” the Dragon King said, “so you must prove your worth. I too desire something that is withheld from me. For rock and steel and the ice of the Night King keep the jewel that I would possess against all the powers of the Elf-Kingdoms. Yet you have told me that mere obstacles such as these do not daunt you. Then go! Bring to me in your hand a Jewel of Starlight from the Night King’s crown; and then my daughter may be yours.”-A snippet from (the end of Act I?) of a fantasy quest/fairytale AU based on Tolkien's Silmarillion/The Lay of Leithian. Jon's been waging a one-man war against the Night King and the Boltons for the past seven years. Daenerys Targaryen is an elven princess with the power to help the helpless, but without the freedom to use it. When the enemies in his own land force Jon to flee to Valyria, fate brings them together.Here, when King Aerys discovers their relationship, he issues Jon (and Dany, by extension) a suicidal task that will set them on a collision course with the Night King himself.





	A Small Price

**Author's Note:**

> I have an undying love for both game of thrones and basically everything by Tolkien, and thought it was a damn shame that no one's done an AU based on what's arguably the most badass fairytale ever written. This takes place kind of at the end of the story's first act. Jon and Dany are already star-crossed lovers, and have just been discovered by King Aerys. It is not a good situation.
> 
> (Heads up: This chapter borrows _really heavily_ and in some cases outright steals dialogue from the Silm, but if this gets continued the rest won't be as derivative. It's just that if something isn't broke you shouldn't fix it, imho, and I'm shameless enough to steal from the greats.)
> 
> (also, the Hour of the Wolf is still being written, if you're also reading that)

The Dragon King’s hall lay deep in the heart of what was once a volcano, carved from the ancient lava flows that ran through it before even the Children or the Gods roamed here. The obsidian had been carved into intricate designs, some abstract, others depicting ancient battles of elves riding dragons into horrific battles. The tunnel leading them there was lit by torchlight that glimmered off of the gem mosaics set into the walls and ceilings.  


Jon would have marveled in it, if he weren’t most likely marching to his own execution.

When Dany had come into his camp that night, telling him they had been discovered, Jon had felt the familiar fear of capture rise within him, and abrupt panic at the thought of their separation.

“I’ll leave, and return to you,” Jon had said, gathering his pack. He’d become accustomed to fleeing in the dead of night long ago.

“You won’t be able to,” Dany had responded quietly, “My father has sent patrols out scouring this portion of the Wood. There’s no-where for you to run, and you can’t fight your way out of this. My father will hunt you down if you survive it. Do you understand?” She grasped his shoulders and all but shook him. “The only reason they’ve let me here alone is because I convinced him you wouldn’t resist if I warned you. He’s promised you safe passage – “

Jon had barked out a laugh, harsh and brittle. “And you believe him?” Even outside of Valyria, King Aerys’s paranoia, temper, and trials by fire had built up a reputation. From what Dany had told him, the reality was even worse. And that was towards his own kind; according to Dany he didn’t allow his lands to be sullied with the presence of humans. No, there was only one reason he would invite Jon into his throne room, and that was to string him up over the coals.

“I didn’t know what else to do!” Dany had cried, and Jon saw that she was close to tears. He came closer and hushed her, putting his rough hands on her slender ones. He tried not to pretend like a part of him had always known this was futile. She took several deep breaths. “He’s sworn an oath not to kill or harm you, either by his hand or by his orders. But only if you come with me, and if you don’t harm them.” She was pleading with him. “I don’t want to see you burn.”

Jon had felt the sensation of his world falling apart again, like it had seven years ago when he’d seen the carrion crows gathering above his father’s camp. He’d looked at his love and tried to fix in his mind the soft curves of her body and the ethereal quality of her skin – it did not glow, like the legends said of elves, but the darkness seemed not to touch her – and how the moonlight reflected off of the silver of her hair. He kissed her, suddenly, deep and slow, and memorized the feel of soft lips against his own and the little gasp that she made and how her violet eyes fluttered shut at the feel of him.

He remembered the feel of being inside her as she rode him, her head thrown back in ecstasy and the pulse of her magic rippling over his skin, and afterward, when he held her close and felt safe for the first time in years. He remembered her laughter when she’d taught him to dance in the forest clearing where they’d first met, and how his heart lifted when she sang, and the passion in her voice when she spoke of her people. He remembered the bubbling of hope in his chest when she’d seen him that night six months ago, a stranger hiding in the woods of her home, a mortal, haggard and undoubtedly strange and frightening, and had not run from him.

Jon decided that if he were to burn for having her, it would be well worth it.

Even now, surrounded by her father’s guards, he would not change his mind. He’d sent his wolf off – better that they not have him, too. Dany had demanded he be treated like an honored guest, rather than a prisoner. The elves surrounding him were armed to the teeth, but they gave him space and left his hands unbound. Dany walked beside him, head held high and a fire in her eyes, every inch the Dragon Princess.

Her people stopped and starred as they passed, and Jon’s heart beat more quickly. The last time he had been around so many people, they had all been either dead men or slaves of the Night King, or his Bolton servant, or ordinary Men inspired by the bounty on his head to try their luck against him. He wished Ghost were nearby. But at least he had Dany. _For now,_ he thought.

He could tell they were getting close to the throne room firstly because the decorations were becoming more ornate, and secondly because of the smell. The scent of smoke was thicker here, and with it the odor of burning meat. Aerys had burnt another “traitor” this week, Dany had told him. Jon swallowed hard.

Through the double doors, and into the throne room. The ceiling towered above him, supported by columns carved like leaping dragons and flames rising upward. Fires burned along the floors, and the dragon skulls cast eerie shadows off of the black dragonglass walls. Jon had hoped this would be a private audience, to spare Dany from the shame of consorting with a bastard outlaw from another species, but court was in full attendance. Men and women dressed in richly spun robes and gowns of silk and velvet that would have sold for enough money to feed Jon for a month all glared down at him, their elven ears twitching.

Jon tried push down the eerie feeling of being the only human in the room.

Mad King Aerys towered above the crowd upon the Iron Throne, and anyone could see that he was deranged. His face was as fair and handsome as the others of his kind, but there was a wild glint to his eyes, and the rich rubies adorning his crown did not distract from his wild, un-kept hair. His nails were long and jagged. The velvet of his robes was dirty and torn – Jon supposed that their crimson color was to hide any stray specs of blood from the Throne cutting in to him. Which, if the multitude of scabs on his arms were any indication, it did often.

The crowd was silent as he and Dany approached and knelt respectfully before the Iron Throne. Jon’s heart was thundering in his chest. Finally, his love’s father spoke.

“Who are you, mortal, to steal into my lands like a thief in the night, and dare to think yourself worthy to be in the presence of the Dragon?” His voice was rich and strong, but there was an unhinged quality to it, like it could at any moment turn to shouting. Disdain dripped off of his every word.

Jon’s spoke through a tight throat. He wished his uncle had trained him like Robb, but Jon was never meant to become a diplomat. “Jon Snow, nephew of Lord Eddard Stark, your Grace.”

“ _Snow,_ ” Aerys hissed, “A bastard.” Then he cackled, a high, broken sound. “See how he flinches at the mention of his own humble birth!” The nobles in attendance laughed nervously. While Jon thought his reaction had subtle enough, elven eyes must have been able to detect it.

Dany, of course, came to his aid. “He is the last male heir of a noble House, mortal or not, and is not deserving of your scorn,” she said, heat in her voice. “Lord Snow has spent the last seven years harrying the Night King’s and the Flayed Man’s forces, and the enemy has deemed him of such import that there is a price on his head as high of that of a Lannister – “

“ _Silence!”_ roared Aerys, leaning forward on his throne. “The dragon does not concern himself with the price of lions or men, he swallows them alike. You would best remember that. Nor do I count any comparison to the Lannisters as high praise.” Dany said nothing, but neither did she flinch.

“Let the Man speak,” continued the King, putting the same emphasis on “man” that Jon would have put on “cockroach”. “Mortal, why should I allow one of your unworthy, faithless and weak-willed kind to flee from your own land to test the magic of my borders? No being could have survived seven years alone in the frozen North without aid from the Night King or his servants. His rising voice held all of the terrible conviction of unswayable madness – not logic. “You’re his dog! Or you, perhaps, and agent of the Lion? What price did he pay you for the secrets of my fortress? Was it gold? Or…did he promise you something _sweeter?_ ” He made it sound obscene, he way his eyes appraised Dany as he spoke his last word made Jon want to impale him on one of the swords of his own godsdamned throne.

Maybe it was the insult to himself and the accusation that he was a spy, or perhaps it was the insult to his entire species or the way he looked at his own daughter, but Jon was taken by some sort of madness. Who was this tyrant, rapist, and murderer to insult him?

“I’m not an enemy to anyone here, and if things I’ve endured seem unlikely to you it is because they are, and few men or elves could have survived them. Not that you would be able to recognize the truth from a falsehood, because you do not have the experience, sitting here happy and safe on your throne, to know a damn thing about the men that have been fighting and dying to the White Walker’s swords for centuries.

“I came to Valyria because my own land was overrun by wights and fortune-hunters seeking my head.” His voice grew stronger, and realizing that for his last insult Jon was sure that the Mad King would slay him one way or another, he set self-preservation aside.

“I stayed not for gold, but for another treasure, one above all gold and silver, and beyond all jewels. Neither rock, nor steel, nor the ice of the Night King, nor all the powers of Elves or Men, shall keep me from the treasure that I desire. For Daenerys Stormborn has pledged her love to me, and that I can never relinquish.”

The gasps that followed his show of audacity were clearly audible, Dany’s among them. Jon, still kneeling, outstretched his hand, not caring who saw, and Dany clasped it, lacing their fingers together.

The Dragon King looked upon them with fury burning in his eyes. “Truly, you deserve death for even dreaming to possess her,” he said slowly, and with growing anger. “Only a dragon can have another dragon. I would not dilute her bloodline with one of my own kind, let alone your inferior race! Death you deserve, and fire would I give you, if it were not for the I swore my oath to my daughter in haste to see this Man that wandered my lands, _bastard,_ for I did not think that, in her her stupidity she would rather let a thrall of the Night King between her legs than remove him from my lands!”

Jon was filled with such a fury that his hand went to the sword that was not there. He would have shouted something in Daenerys’s defense, shamed though he was for subjecting her to this, but she squeezed his hand tight enough to hurt, warning him.

Aerys’s next words were directed towards younger elf with a silver circlet set on his brow rushed forward, ready to strike Jon at the king’s words. He was outfitted in fine mail encrusted with golden and ruby dragons that were more decorative than functional, and his sword was out of its sheath. If looks could kills, Jon would be bleeding out before him. “I have sworn an oath, Viserys,” the King told his son, “though I regret it. Your betrothed, however…”

Jon realized that this was Dany’s brother, the one that used to frighten her. He re-sheathed his blade, glared and Jon, and then struck his sister across the face with his mailed fist. Dany swayed and fell onto her hands. The red bruise marked her fair skin, and blood dripped to the black stones from a cut on her lip. It took everything in Jon not to move. If he moved, his oath of nonviolence would break – he would burn. And Dany would have to watch.

He seethed in place and turned his gaze back to Aerys Targaryen. The King smiled the slow, self-assured and cruel smile, revealing yellowed teeth. When he spoke, his voice was full of mockery.

“It is a difficult thing you ask of me, to relinquish my own daughter to a mortal, when I do not count our own kind worthy of her blood,” the King continued, “so you must prove your worth. I too desire something that is withheld from me. For rock and steel and the ice of the Night King keep the jewel that I would possess against all the powers of the Elf-Kingdoms. Yet you have told me that mere obstacles such as these do not daunt you.” Amused laughter rang through the crowd.

“Then go!” said the King, “Bring to me in your hand a Jewel of Starlight from the Night King’s crown; and then my daughter may be yours. And though my kind has fought for a millennium to reclaim the prize I am sending you to retrieve for me, you should count me merciful.”

Jon stared. Dany stared, her brother stared, and all of the gathered nobles stared.

Long ago, Lann the Clever, the elf that founded house Lannister, stole Casterly Rock from the Casterlys, and the sun’s rays for his golden hair, but these feats paled before his greatest achievement. Lann the Clever stole the essence of three stars from the night sky and forged them into three jewels of that shone with pure light. The elves marveled at their beauty, and all deemed them greatest work of all their kind.

But rumors of the jewels reached the Night King’s ears, and though he hated all things with warmth and fire in them, he desired them as well. And so, it was that the Night King stole the jewels, and set them into his crowd of ice, though the heat of them rebelled against the evil in him and scorched his skin like coals. Enraged at the theft of his greatest work, Lann swore vengeance, as did his sons and his son’s sons, and the elves had been locked in a battle to reclaim them ever since. Lann perished quickly; his sons Tywin and Kevan were undeterred, leading their armies into battle to avenge their father and fulfil his oath. Hundreds, thousands, had given themselves to the quest.

And all had failed and died. For the Jewels were set in the Ice Crown, deep in the dark fortress in the Lands of Always Winter, and around them were the White Walkers and their wights, their ice-spiders and undead beasts, the Ice Dragon, and all of the dread power of the Night King himself.

But Jon laughed.

“You set a small price for your daughter’s hand, Your Grace,” he said, “Daenerys Targaryen is worth more than any mere gem. But if that is your task, I will see it done.” Dany was looking at him, pleading silently, but Jon was undeterred. It was a suicide mission, but Aerys was never going to let him live, couldn’t she see that?

Aerys Targaryen’s smile turned sour. “Do you seek to mock me, boy?”

“No, your Grace” said Jon, thinking that perhaps he had gone mad during his years of solitude. But he had long ago grown so accustomed to death that he’d stopped fearing it. His family was dead, his home was overrun, what did he have to lose, other than Daenerys? He was reminded of the phrase ‘fools rush in where angels fear to tread’, but maybe, just maybe, a single man could succeed where elves could not. He had a _chance,_ just the ghost of a chance, maybe, but a chance nonetheless.

He would have his wife, and they would be free.

“Your confidence is encouraging,” said Aerys, “but know this: you have a year to complete your task, after which Viserys will be free to wed his sister. I see that I have let her have too much freedom of late.” Jon’s heart went cold, and Dany went stiff besides him. “And I am sure that Viserys will need no encouragement to punish you for defiling his new wife’s honor.”

“I would not,” spat Viserys acidly.

There was the catch. It was a suicide mission, with no way out. And both of them knew not to try the king’s good graces by pleading for another task or more time.

“Then you will see me again in one year,” said Jon, “and when I return, I will hold in my hand one of the Jewels of Starlight from the Night King’s crown. This I swear by the Old Gods and the New. I swear it by earth and water, by bronze and iron, by ice and fire. I will come back,” he said, this time to Dany, “I promise you, and we’ll be together.”

Her violet eyes were fury and determination. That was his dragon princess, she would never let her father and brother see her cry. She would be strong. “You will,” she told him. And then, barely above a whisper, she added, “And I will see you again in less than one year.”

_Oh, gods, no._ She was planning on following him. _Of_ _course_ she was planning on following him. Dany would never sit idly by where her own life was concerned, especially not when the alternative was imprisonment and rape. What alternative did she have?

He’d done this to her. She could have had years to plan her escape from Valyria; now she had only a year. He should have never spoken to her –

“Guards,” yelled Aerys, “return this man to the border! And take Princess Daenerys to the Holdfast – I think it best to keep you there, daughter, away from the temptation of spreading your legs for any passing stranger like a common slut.”

“ _No!”_ shouted Daenerys, rushing to her feet. “I am a Princess and will be treated –“

“- As I see fit!” roared the King. Dany struck out at the first elf that tried to grab her; the second dodged and succeeded in seizing her by the wrists. Her father’s voice rose above her cries. “You have brought shame upon this House! You should count yourself lucky your mother is unable to bear any more heirs, else I would have you burned with the other traitors!”

By now, Jon was being hoisted to his feet and dragged away from the hall. Dany yelled to him over her shoulder, as she was being dragged in the opposite direction. “I love you!”

Jon’s heart turned over in his chest, as it always did when she said the words. “I’ll see you under the heart tree when I return!” he shouted back.

And then the great doors of the hall shut before him, and Daenerys Targaryen disappeared from view.

Despite his earlier confidence, he now hoped, more than he had ever hoped before, that it would not be the last time.

**Author's Note:**

> I had a ton of fun writing this.  
> Right, so if this gets continued, Dany obviously needs to escape so she can start kicking ass, and Jon will need some help. In the story this is based on, the hero gets help from a elven king that  
> a. is related to the heroine (albeit kinda distantly)  
> b. was on good terms/owed a favor to one of the hero's parents  
> c. had a bunch of guys actively ready to help and die with him if need be, like, you know, a Kingsguard  
> And most importantly,  
> d. _had the singing voice of a god and could play a mean harp_
> 
> What character could _possibly_ be slotted into this role? I just have _absolutely no idea_.
> 
> Anyway, let me know if you want more. Like the beginning of the story. Or the middle, or the end.


End file.
